System and method for reducing vehicle generated carbon dioxide emissions

ABSTRACT

A system is disclosed having a primary vehicle and a secondary vehicle that is carried by the primary vehicle when not in use. The system further includes at least one of an immobilizing device to immobilize the primary vehicle if the secondary vehicle is removed from the primary vehicle, a data storage device for storing information regarding usage of the primary and secondary vehicles, a user interface device for displaying information regarding usage of the primary and secondary vehicles, and a user prompt for providing information regarding potential opportunities for use of the secondary vehicle to encourage usage of the secondary vehicle and lower CO2 emissions.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims priority to United Kingdom PatentApplication No. 1206692.4, filed on Apr. 17, 2012, the entire contentsof which are hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes.

INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY

This invention relates to vehicle system including a composite passengervehicle offering the potential for reduced Carbon Dioxide (CO2)emissions.

Emissions from passenger vehicles and in particular CO2 emissions is anever increasing problem as is vehicle congestion in cities and largeconurbations. In many parts of the world governments have implementedlegislation to reduce the emission of Carbon dioxide from passengervehicles by introducing so called ‘carbon taxes’ or ‘green taxes’ eitherdirectly on the manufacturers of the vehicle or by taxing users basedupon the CO2 their vehicle produces. Furthermore, in some countries,congestion charging is being introduced to discourage the use ofpassenger vehicles in major cities.

Consequently, much policy discussion and research focuses on what isoften referred to as “the last mile problem” namely, if citizens arediscouraged from using private vehicles in inner cities, how do they getfrom the last out-of-centre car park or the last public transport node(e.g. tram station or bus stop) to their final destination.

Some government bodies are regulating fleet-average emissions for carmanufacturers by defining increasingly strict mandatory average emissiontargets, as well as eco-innovation credits and excess emissionpenalties.

Composite vehicles have a primary vehicle that produces CO2 and asecondary vehicle that can be transported by the primary vehicle butwhich when used produces substantially less CO2. An example of such acomposite vehicle is a passenger vehicle having a cycle rack used totransport a pedal cycle. If the cycle is transported by the passengervehicle and is used whenever it is practical to do so, then asignificant reduction in CO2 emissions and reduced congestion ispotentially available. However there is currently no mechanism or userguidance available to encourage the most efficient possible usage of thetwo vehicles.

The inventors recognized a need for a composite vehicle that can assistwith the aim of reducing CO2 emissions and city congestion and a methodto encourage more intelligent vehicle usage.

An embodiment disclosed herein provides a system and method for reducingroad vehicle generated CO2 emissions thereby potentially reducing coststo individual owner and/or users, vehicle manufacturers and theenvironment, as well as addressing the last-mile problem. Further, bycommunicatively coupling the primary vehicle to the secondary vehicle,the use of the secondary vehicle may be optimized.

It should be understood that the summary above is provided to introducein simplified form a selection of concepts that are further described inthe detailed description. It is not meant to identify key or essentialfeatures of the claimed subject matter, the scope of which is defineduniquely by the claims that follow the detailed description.Furthermore, the claimed subject matter is not limited toimplementations that solve any disadvantages noted above or in any partof this disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a first embodiment of a system including acomposite vehicle according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a second embodiment of a system including acomposite vehicle according to an alternate embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a third embodiment of a system including acomposite vehicle according to an alternate embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a side view of a combined battery and motor unit of thecomposite vehicle shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a view similar to that of FIG. 4 but showing the combinedbattery and motor unit connected to a road wheel;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a fourth embodiment of a system including acomposite vehicle an alternate embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart of a method for operating a composite motorvehicle according to an alternate embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart of a method for reducing passenger vehiclegenerated Carbon dioxide emissions according to an alternate embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A first embodiment provides a system for reducing vehicle generatedcarbon dioxide emissions, the system comprising a composite vehiclecomprised of a primary vehicle having a carbon dioxide emissionproducing engine and a secondary vehicle producing less carbon dioxideemissions than the primary vehicle and being transportable by theprimary vehicle. The secondary vehicle producing less carbon dioxideemissions may be a vehicle with a smaller engine, a plug-in electricvehicle, a hybrid battery-motor-engine powered vehicle, or a vehiclethat, when traveling over a given distance carrying a passenger,produces at least some, but less, emissions over that distance than theprimary vehicle would produce carrying the passenger of said distance.

The primary and/or secondary vehicle may include a diesel or petrolcombustion engine. A composite vehicle may include a device to detectwhether the secondary vehicle has been removed from the primary vehicle,an immobilizing device to immobilize the primary vehicle if thesecondary vehicle is removed from the primary vehicle, a data storagedevice for storing information regarding usage of the primary andsecondary vehicles, a user interface device for displaying informationregarding usage of the primary and secondary vehicles, a user promptdevice for providing information regarding potential opportunities foruse of the secondary vehicle, and a device for transferring dataregarding usage of the two vehicles to a third party.

The data storage device may comprise at least one memory unit forstoring data regarding usage of the primary and secondary vehicles. Oneor more memory units may be arranged to store the distances travelled bythe primary vehicle, time stamps of movement of the primary vehicle,time stamps of engine-on events of the primary vehicle, the energyconsumed by the primary vehicle, the carbon dioxide produced by use ofthe primary vehicle, the distance travelled by the secondary vehicle,time stamps of movement of the secondary vehicle, time stamps ofengine-on events of the secondary vehicle, the energy consumed by thesecondary vehicle, the Carbon dioxide produced by use of the secondaryvehicle, or some combination thereof.

The user interface device may display information regarding usage of theprimary and secondary vehicles and may comprise a display showing thedistance travelled by the primary vehicle and the distance travelled bythe secondary vehicle. One or more displays may provide an indication ofthe actual usage of the primary vehicle compared to a target usageand/or a compensated usage for the primary vehicle based upon actualusage of the primary and secondary vehicles.

The system may include the immobilizing device to immobilize the primaryvehicle and a device to detect whether the secondary vehicle has beenremoved from the primary vehicle.

The device to detect whether the secondary vehicle has been removed fromthe primary vehicle may comprise a physical sensor and a contactlesscommunication link between the primary and secondary vehicles operableto determine when the secondary vehicle is located remotely from theprimary vehicle. It may further include an electronic system fortracking the geographic positions of the primary and secondary vehiclesthat may be communicatively coupled to a control system. The controlsystem may also compare the locations of the primary and secondaryvehicles and provide an output indicative of the removal of thesecondary vehicle if the respective geographic locations of the primaryand secondary vehicles differ by more than a predefined amount.

The contactless communications link may utilize Radio FrequencyIdentification or Near Field Communication. It may further include anactive radio frequency and a passive radio frequency tag on each vehicleand a radio frequency reader to read the output from the radio frequencytags.

The system may also include a data storage device for storinginformation regarding usage of the primary and secondary vehicles thatmay be displayed via a user interface device. The system may furtherinclude a user prompt device for displaying information regardingpotential opportunities for use of the secondary vehicle.

Embodiments may utilize a navigation system capable of determining acurrent position of the motor vehicle and a destination for the primaryvehicle based upon a user input. A user prompt may include a displaythat may indicate to a user of the primary vehicle when an opportunityfor secondary vehicle use exists based upon information regarding thedestination of the primary vehicle, the proximity of the primary vehicleto its destination, and/or the location of parking garages in thevicinity of the destination.

A control system may have instructions to determine and indicate anopportunity for use of the secondary vehicle in response to a determinedcost, a travel time, an environmental advantage, or some combinationthereof.

A navigation systems and/or the user prompt device of the primaryvehicle may be removable from the primary vehicle for use on thesecondary vehicle to enable the secondary vehicle to continue thejourney to the destination and to guide the secondary vehicle back tothe primary vehicle.

The destination information may be transferable to the secondary vehiclefrom the primary vehicle to enable the secondary vehicle to continue thejourney to the destination and to guide the secondary vehicle back tothe primary vehicle.

The data storage device for storing information regarding usage of theprimary and secondary vehicles, the user interface for displayinginformation regarding usage of the primary and secondary vehicles,and/or the user prompt device for providing information regardingpotential opportunities for use of the secondary vehicle may include orbe included in a transportable communications device. A radio frequencyreader may be included in the transportable communications device andmay be operatively connected to the transportable communications device.The usage information may be transferred wirelessly or by a physicallink.

Use of the secondary vehicle may produce significantly less or zero CO2emissions than the primary vehicle.

A further disclosed embodiment includes a method of operating acomposite motor vehicle having a CO2-emission-producing primary vehicleand a secondary vehicle. The secondary vehicle may produce significantlyless CO2 emissions than the primary vehicle for the same journey. Themethod may comprise allowing normal operation of the primary vehiclewhile the secondary vehicle is attached to the primary vehicle andimmobilizing the primary vehicle if the secondary vehicle is removedfrom the primary vehicle.

FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of a composite vehicle with a primaryand a secondary vehicle attached to the exterior of the primary vehiclefor transportation. FIG. 2 shows an alternate embodiment where thesecondary vehicle is transported inside the primary vehicle in a storagearea. FIG. 3 shows an embodiment wherein the secondary vehicle includesan independent battery and electric motor for propulsion that mayinteract with, but is detachable from, the primary vehicle. FIG. 4 showsthe cross section depicted in FIG. 3 of the primary and secondaryvehicle. FIG. 5 shows the same cross section of the secondary vehicle.FIG. 6 shows an alternate embodiment of a composite vehicle. FIGS. 7 and8 show example operating methods. Referring firstly to FIG. 1, anexample system 5 includes a composite motor vehicle comprised of aprimary or host vehicle 6 in the form of a four wheel road vehicle suchas a car and a secondary vehicle 7 in the form of a pedal cycle 7.

For the purposes of this disclosure, the term “composite vehicle” refersto a vehicle comprised of two vehicles which form a two parttransportation system having differing levels of CO2 production. One ofthe vehicles is transportable by the other vehicle and its use producesa lower level of CO2 emissions. The term “composite vehicle” does notrefer to the material from which either of the vehicles is made.

It should also be appreciated that the “composite vehicle” may compriseof two vehicles that are designed and manufactured for use as acomposite vehicle or may comprise of two vehicles independently designedand manufactured that may be combined by the use of suitable additionalcomponents such as hardware, software, and firmware to form a compositevehicle. One example of this would be a conventional or hybrid car and apedal cycle that may be carried by the car by a rack and to whichadditional components may be fitted to produce the functionality of acomposite vehicle. It should also be appreciated that there may be morethan one secondary vehicle transported by the primary vehicle.

The secondary vehicle 7 may be transported by the primary vehicle 6 whenit is not in use. In this embodiment, it is carried on a rack mounted onthe rear of the primary vehicle 6. The rack may have two brackets 13 tomount or nest the secondary vehicle 7 on the primary vehicle 6. Thesecondary vehicle 7 has front and rear road wheels 16F and 16R,respectively, and pedals (not shown) which may be actuated by a user forsecondary vehicle propulsion.

The primary vehicle 6 has front and rear road wheels 8F, 8R which may bedriven by a CO2 generating engine 10 via a transmission (not shown). Theengine 10 may be any form of engine that produces CO2 emissions, in thisembodiment the engine 10 is a spark ignited petrol engine.

The primary vehicle 6 may include an electronic unit 20 which, as shown,comprises a single unit but could alternately comprise of several unitslinked together to provide the disclosed functions. An electronic unit20 may therefore comprise a safety and security unit, one or more memoryunits to store operational data, one or more microprocessors and one ormore units to provide information for display to a user of the primaryvehicle 6.

A control system 52 may be included in the electronic until 20 or beindependent and communicatively coupled to the electronic until 20.Further embodiments may include multiple control systems, some of whichmay be located within the electric until 20. The control system 52 maybe responsive to sensors 50 that may communicate with the control systemvia electronic unit 20. The control system 52 may also control actuators54 or displays via the electronic unit 20. Control system 52 maytherefore comprise a safety and security unit, one or more memory unitsto store operational data, one or more microprocessors and one or moreunits to provide information for display to a user of the primaryvehicle 6 additionally or alternatively to those within electric unit20.

Electronic unit 20 may be responsive to sensors that communicate via thecontrol system 52 and may control actuators or displays via controlsystem 52. Other embodiments may have a control system that does notcommunicate with the electronic unit. Specifically, post-manufacturingmodifications may equip the vehicle with the functionality describedherein. These embodiments may have a primary vehicle control systemand/or a secondary vehicle control system that do not communicate withthe electronic unit 20.

In the example shown, the electronic unit 20 is operatively connected toother components of the system 5 in the form of a distance sensor 11used to measure the distance travelled by the primary vehicle 6, a userinterface 12, a user controlled override device 19, a connector 15 and,a secondary electronic unit 21 mounted on the secondary vehicle 7 thatmay communicate with the primary electronic unit 20 via the connector15.

It should be appreciated that the primary vehicle 6 may, alternativelyor additionally to the distance measuring sensor 11, have an energyusage sensor to calculate real CO2 emissions per km travelled. It mayalso include a CO2 emission sensor to measure the instantaneous andcumulative CO2 emissions from the primary vehicle 6, the secondaryvehicle 7, or both.

A distance sensor 22, used to measure the distance travelled by thesecondary vehicle 7, may be operatively connected to the secondaryelectronic unit 21. The secondary electronic unit 21 may supplyinformation to the primary electronic unit 20 regarding usage of thesecondary vehicle 7 and, in particular, the distance travelled by thesecondary vehicle 7. The secondary electronic unit 21 may also providean identity signal to the primary electronic unit 20 that may be used bythe electronic unit 21 to determine whether the secondary vehicle 7 isnested with the primary vehicle 6 or has been removed.

When the secondary vehicle 7 is removed from the primary vehicle 6, theconnection between the secondary vehicle 7 and the electronic unit 20via the connector 15 may be broken. This may be used as an indicationthat the secondary vehicle 7 has been removed from the primary vehicle6.

The braking or disconnection of the connector 15 can be sensed in anumber of ways. A proximity sensor may be used that senses whether thetwo parts of the connector 15 are connected. The absence of a signalreception of the primary electronic 20 from the secondary electronicunit 21 may also be used by the electronic unit 20 as an indication thatthe secondary vehicle 7 has been removed.

The removal of the secondary vehicle 7 may also be sensed independentlyof the state of the connector 15. For example, a contactlesscommunication link between the primary and secondary vehicles 6 and 7may be used to determine when the secondary vehicle 7 is locatedremotely from the primary vehicle 6. Specifically, in some embodiments,an infrared or radio frequency signal of low power may be transmitted bythe secondary vehicle 7. If the signal is not receivable by the primaryvehicle 6 it may be assumed that the secondary vehicle 7 has beenremoved.

Alternatively, an electronic system may be provided to track thegeographic positions of the primary and secondary vehicles 6 and 7,compare the locations of the primary and secondary vehicles 6 and 7, andprovide output indicative of the removal of the secondary vehicle 7 ifthe respective geographic locations of the primary and secondaryvehicles 6 and 7 differ by more than a predefined amount.

In one disclosed embodiment, the primary vehicle 6 may be immobilizedwhen the secondary vehicle 7 is removed so as to prevent parallel ordual usage of the two vehicles 6, 7. To this end, an immobilizing devicecomprising an electronic controller operable to prevent operation of theengine 10 if the secondary vehicle 7 is removed from the primary vehicle6 may be provided as part of the system 5. The electronic controller maybe formed as part of the electronic unit 20 or may be a separate unitand may make use of existing vehicle capabilities.

For example, if immobilizing of the primary vehicle 6 is required, thesame apparatus used to immobilize the primary vehicle 6 when it islocked by a user (such as a safety and security) may be used to effectprimary vehicle immobilization, thereby reducing any extra costsassociated with use of the embodiment.

The system 5 may further include data storage device for storinginformation regarding usage of the primary and secondary vehicles 6 and7. In one embodiment, the data storage device may comprise one or morememory devices formed as part of the electronic unit 20.

The stored information may be used to provide information to a user ofthe composite vehicle regarding usage of the primary and secondaryvehicles 6 and 7. Stored information may also be extracted by regulatoryauthorities from the electronic unit 20 using a diagnostic port (notshown) for uses including taxation. Alternately, the data for a journeymay be stored temporarily in the primary vehicle 6 and then betransmitted to regulatory authorities and/or to the manufacturer of theprimary vehicle 6 for cumulative vehicle history storage.

For example, if the data stored in the electronic unit 20 indicates thatthe primary vehicle 6 has travelled 9500 km and the secondary vehiclehas travelled 500 km this could be used to adjust the taxation payableso as to encourage greater use of the secondary vehicle 7. This may beadvantageous in countries (such as the UK) wherein road excise duty isbased upon the grams of CO2 emitted per km and various bands and exciserates are in effect. Embodiments may allow a user to store, discard, ortransmit stored information regarding the usage of the primary andsecondary vehicle via a user prompt or input device. A user may also beable to selectively store usage information including deactivating thedata storage device via a user prompt.

Table 1 below provides an example of how emission bands may relate tothe tax levied.

TABLE 1 Band A B C D E F G CO2 <100 101-110 111-120 121-130 131-140141-150 151-165 (g/km) Tax £ 0 20 30 95 115 130 165 Band H I J K L M CO2166-175 176-185 186-200 210-225 226-255 >225 (g/km) Tax £ 190 210 245260 445 460

Example 1, assumes a user travels 9500 km in one year using the primaryvehicle 6 and 500 km using the secondary vehicle 7. If the quoted CO2rating for the primary vehicle 6 is, for example, 105 g/km the user maybe charged £20 in road tax. But if the total usage of the two vehiclescould be taken into account a potential saving of £20 could be offeredto the driver: (9500*105)/10000=99.75 g/km via government issuedincentives.

Example 2 assumes the primary vehicle 6 is a 180 g/km vehicle and isused for 5500 km and the secondary vehicle 7 is used for 600 km.

In this example the potential tax saving is £45 because the recalculatedemissions are: (5500*180)/6000=165 g/km.

For example, if the usage of the secondary vehicle 7 is deducted fromthe usage of the primary vehicle 6 but the total distance is retainedthen, using the values from examples 1 and 2 above:

((9500−500)*105)/10000=94.5 g/km   Example 3

((5500−500))*180/10000=90.0 g/km   Example 4

In this example the resulting potential savings are £20 and £210respectively.

It should be appreciated that these savings are exemplary. Othertaxation systems may further enhance savings, for example, by providingincreased savings for increased usage of the secondary vehicle.

A vehicle manufacturer may potentially benefit from this reductioneither by affecting their fleet-average emissions directly or byreceiving credits for employing an eco-innovation technology. Therefore,fleet-average emission targets may be used to incentivize the uptake ofcomposite vehicles with their knock-on benefit of reduced city-centrecongestion and pollution levels.

Advantageously, the system 5 includes the user interface 12 fordisplaying information regarding usage of the primary and secondaryvehicles 6 and 7 as part of the primary vehicle 6. This may be displayedvia a simple gauge or counter or a display screen on which informationregarding usage is displayed.

For example, the user interface 12 may show one or more of the distancestravelled by the primary vehicle and secondary vehicles. It may furtherdisplay an indication of the actual usage of the primary vehiclecompared to a target usage to meet a taxation or other use criterion orthe compensated usage for the primary vehicle based upon actual usage ofthe primary and secondary vehicles such as given above in examples 1 to4. This may give the user of the composite vehicle the opportunity tomodify their usage patterns to minimize CO2 emissions and/or maximizetax savings.

Another embodiment may provide the primary vehicle 6 a navigation system(not shown) capable of determining a current position of the primarymotor vehicle 6 and a destination for the primary vehicle 6 based upon auser input. In this example, a user prompt (not shown) may also beprovided to analyze positional information from the navigation systemand provide an ‘output’ to a user of the primary vehicle 6 via a displaywhich may be the user interface 12 or a separate display such as thedisplay screen of the navigation system. It should be appreciated thatthe user prompt may include an electronic processor formed as part ofthe electronic unit 20 or as part of the navigation system to generatethe ‘output’.

The information displayed may be used to indicate to a user of theprimary vehicle 6 when an ‘opportunity for use’ of the secondary vehicle7 exists based upon information regarding the destination of the primaryvehicle, the proximity of the primary vehicle 6 to its destination andthe location of parking garages in the vicinity of the destination. This‘opportunity for use’ could also include providing a cost trade-offcalculation for the whole journey, including fuel usage, parkingalternatives, congestion charging etc., overlaid with correspondingtravel times, to give the driver optimum scenarios such as, cheapestjourney, quickest journey, greenest journey, etc.

For example, if the destination for the primary vehicle 6 is locatedwithin a city, the user prompt may calculate a ‘use distance’ from thedestination for which it would be reasonable to use the secondaryvehicle 7 or for which it may make sense to use the secondary vehicle 7due to congestion and then seek out parking garages within the areadefined by the destination and the ‘use distance’ that may be used topark the primary vehicle 6. When the area bounded by the ‘use distance’is sensed from the navigation system to be reached the user prompt mayissue an advice message via the display such as:—

“Use of Secondary vehicle is advised.

Do you wish to use Secondary Vehicle?”.

If the answer is ‘yes’ then the user prompt may automatically select thenearest parking garage and reset the destination of the navigationsystem to that parking garage. If the driver decides not to swap to thesecondary vehicle 7 thereby ignoring the user prompt, then additionalreminders and further warnings may be issued to encourage use of thesecondary vehicle 7.

In some embodiments, the system 5 may include an override device 19which can be operated by the user of the primary vehicle 6 in order tooverride the immobilization of the primary vehicle 6 when the secondaryvehicle 7 is removed. This may allow for dual use of the vehicles incircumstances where, for example, the primary vehicle 6 is in for repairor service or for use of both vehicles 6, 7.

Although the primary vehicle 6 is shown and described in respect of aconventional motor vehicle powered by an engine 10, it should beappreciated that the primary vehicle could be a hybrid vehicle having anengine and one or more electric motors and associated batteries for usein powering the primary vehicle 6.

Although the embodiments so far described immobilize the primary whenthe secondary vehicle is removed, it should be appreciated that otherembodiments may not immobilize the vehicle.

Referring now to FIG. 2, an alternate embodiment of a system 105includes a composite vehicle comprised of primary and secondary vehicles106 and 107 that may be similar to that previously described withrespect to FIG. 1 in many respects.

As before, the secondary vehicle 107 may be transported by the primaryvehicle 106 when it is not in use and in this example may be transportedin a load or luggage area of the primary vehicle 106.

The secondary vehicle 107 has front and rear road wheels 116F and 116Rrespectively and a combined battery and motor unit 125 that may propel asecondary vehicle when in use. It should be appreciated that the batteryand the electric motor needn't be formed as a single combined batteryand motor unit and may be separate components.

In the example shown, the combined battery and motor unit 125 isdrivingly connected to the rear wheel 116R by an output shaft.Embodiments may also use other drive connections such as a belt drive ora chain drive. In this embodiment, the secondary vehicle 107 is anelectric bicycle, in other embodiments it may be an electric scooter orother small electric powered vehicle that can be conveniently stowed inthe load area of the primary vehicle 106.

An electric generator in the form of an alternator 109 driven by theengine 110 may be used to provide electrical power to the primaryvehicle 106 and may also supply electrical power to the secondaryvehicle 107 to recharge the battery of the combined battery and motorunit 125. Electric power may be supplied to the secondary vehicle 107via the connector 115. The battery of the secondary vehicle 107 may becharged by the generator when the primary vehicle 106 is slowing down byway of regenerative braking The use of regenerative braking may thusrecuperate kinetic energy from the primary vehicle 106 that mayotherwise be lost.

The primary vehicle 106 has front and rear road wheels 108F, 108R and,in this embodiment, the two front road wheels 108F are driven by a CO2generating engine 110 via a transmission (not shown). The engine 110 maybe any form of engine that produces CO2 emissions such as a diesel orpetrol engine.

The system 105 includes an electronic unit 120 as part of the primaryvehicle 106. Electronic unit 120 may comprise a single unit or severalunits linked together to provide the required functions. As before, theelectronic unit 120 can therefore comprise an engine control unit, asafety and security unit, one or more memory units to store operationaldata, one or more microprocessors, and/or one or more units to provideinformation for display to a user of the primary vehicle 106.

The electronic unit 120 may be operatively connected to other componentsof the system 105 in the form of a distance sensor 111 used to measurethe distance travelled by the primary vehicle 106, a user interface 112,a user controlled override device 119, a connector 115, and/or asecondary electronic unit 121 mounted on the secondary vehicle 107.

The primary vehicle 106 may, in alternative or addition to the distancemeasuring sensor 111, have an energy usage sensor to calculate real CO2emissions per km travelled and/or a CO2 emission sensor to measure theinstantaneous and cumulative CO2 emissions from the primary vehicle 106or from the primary vehicle 106 and the secondary vehicle 107. Adistance sensor 122, may be used to measure the distance travelled bythe secondary vehicle 107, and may be operatively connected to thesecondary electronic unit 121.

The secondary electronic unit 121 may supply information to the primaryelectronic unit 120 regarding usage of the secondary vehicle 107,specifically the distance travelled by the secondary vehicle 107. Thesecondary electronic unit 121 may also provide an identity signal to theprimary electronic unit 120 that can be used by the electronic unit 10to determine whether the secondary vehicle 107 is nested with theprimary vehicle 106 or has been removed. When the secondary vehicle 107is removed from the primary vehicle 106, the connection between thesecondary vehicle 107 and the electronic unit 120 via the connector 115may be broken and used as an indication that the secondary vehicle 107has been removed from the primary vehicle 106.

As before, the removal of the secondary vehicle 107 may be sensedindependently of the state of the connector 115 by a contactlesscommunication link between the primary and secondary vehicles 106 and107. Alternately, an electronic system may be provided to track thegeographic positions of the primary and secondary vehicles 106 and 107,compare the locations of the primary and secondary vehicles 106 and 107and provide an output indicative of the removal of the secondary vehicle107 if the respective geographic locations of the primary and secondaryvehicles 106 and 107 differ by more than a predefined amount.

The primary vehicle 106 may be immobilized when the secondary vehicle107 is removed so as to prevent parallel or dual usage of the twovehicles 106 and 107. The primary vehicle 106 may therefore be fittedwith an immobilizing device comprising an electronic controller operableto prevent operation of the engine 110 if the secondary vehicle 107 isremoved from the primary vehicle 106. The electronic controller may beformed as part of the electronic unit 120 or may be a separate unit andmay make use of existing vehicle capabilities.

The system 105 also includes data storage device for storing informationregarding usage of the primary and secondary vehicles 106 and 107. Thisstored information may be used to provide information to a user of thecomposite vehicle regarding usage. It may further be extracted byregulatory authorities from the electronic unit 120 using a diagnosticport (not shown), for example, for other uses including taxation.

The user interface 112 may display information regarding usage of theprimary and secondary vehicles 106 and 107 and can take the form of asimple gauge or counter in the primary vehicle 106 showing usage, adisplay screen, or a touch screen display on which information regardingusage is displayed. Further, the user interface may allow specific usagetargets that may be set via operator input.

The information displayed may include one or more of the distancestravelled by the primary and secondary vehicles 106, 107 and anindication of the actual usage of the primary vehicle 106 compared to atarget. By displaying usage information, a user of the composite vehiclemay be encouraged to modify their usage pattern to minimize CO2production, reduce congestion, and/or benefit from tax savings.

The primary vehicle 106 may also have a navigation system (not shown)capable of determining a current position of the primary vehicle 106 anda destination for the primary vehicle 106 based on a user input. A userprompt device (not shown) may be provided to analyze positionalinformation from the navigation system and provide an ‘output’ to a userof the primary vehicle 106 via a display. The display may be the userinterface 112 or a separate display such as a display screen of thenavigation system.

In either case, the display may be used indicate to a user of theprimary vehicle 106 when an ‘opportunity for use’ of the secondaryvehicle 107 exists based upon information regarding the destination ofthe primary vehicle, the proximity of the primary vehicle 106 to itsdestination and the location of parking garages in the vicinity of thedestination to encourage use of the secondary vehicle 107. The userprompt device may include an electronic processor formed as part of theelectronic unit 120 or as part of the navigation system to generate the‘output’.

As before, this ‘opportunity for use’ may also include providing a costtrade-off calculation for the whole journey, including fuel usage,parking alternatives, congestion charging etc., overlaid withcorresponding travel times, to give the driver optimum scenarios suchas, cheapest journey, quickest journey, greenest journey, etc.

FIGS. 3 through 5 show an additional embodiment of a system 205including a composite vehicle comprised of a primary vehicle 206 and asecondary vehicle wherein a combined battery and motor unit 217 is shownin FIGS. 3 and 4 and a rear wheel 240 is shown attached to the combinedbattery and motor unit 217 in FIG. 5. The secondary vehicle may alsoinclude a frame (not shown) and a front wheel (not shown). All of theparts forming the secondary vehicle may be, when not in use, transportedby the primary vehicle 206 in a load or luggage area of the primaryvehicle 206.

The combined battery and motor unit 217 includes a battery 225, anelectric motor 226 and a secondary electronic unit 221. A sensor (notshown) may also be provided to measure the distance travelled by thesecondary vehicle when it is in use. Two brackets 229 connect thecombined battery and motor unit 217 to the frame or another structure soas to form an electric cycle when it is removed from the primary vehicle206.

The electric motor 226 is drivingly connectable to the rear wheel 240 byan output shaft 218 that engages with a splined hub 241 of the rearwheel 240 and may be selectively securable in position by a releasablelocking device (not shown).

Although, in this case, the secondary vehicle is an electric bicycle, itshould be appreciated that it could be another type of small electricpowered vehicle that can be conveniently stowed in the load area of theprimary vehicle 206.

In this embodiment, the electric motor 226 may be used to recharge thebattery 225 as will be described in further detail. Alternatively, anelectric generator such as an alternator may be driven by the engine 210as shown by the dotted outline 209 either to assist with or fullyprovide charging of the battery 225.

The primary vehicle 206 may have front and rear road wheels 208F, 208Rdriven by a CO2 generating engine 210 via a transmission (not shown) andthe rear wheels 208R may be drivable by the electric motor 226 when thecombined battery and motor unit 217 is stowed in the primary vehicle206. A differential unit 230 having two output shafts 231A and 231B maybe provided with an input with which the output shaft 218 of theelectric motor 226 is engaged when the combined battery and motor unit217 is stowed in the primary vehicle 206. Power from the electric motor226 may be transmitted via the differential unit 230 and the two outputshafts to the rear wheels 208R.

The primary vehicle 206 may be a hybrid vehicle powered by the engine210, motor 226, or by both. Although in this case one battery 225 isavailable to power the electric motor 226, a further battery may belocated on the primary vehicle 206.

The engine 210 of the primary vehicle 206 may be any form of engine thatproduces CO2 emissions.

In this embodiment, the system 205 and the primary vehicle 206 includesan electronic unit 220 that may comprise a single unit or several unitslinked together to provide the required functions. The electronic unit220 may therefore comprise an engine control unit, a safety and securityunit, one or more memory units to store operational data, one or moremicroprocessors, and one or more units to provide information fordisplay to a user of the primary vehicle 206. The electronic unit 220may be operatively connected to other components of the system 205including a distance sensor 211 used to measure the distance travelledby the primary vehicle 206, a user interface 212, a user controlledoverride device 219, a connector 215, and a secondary electronic unit221 mounted on the combined battery and motor unit 217.

It should be appreciated that the primary vehicle 206 may, as analternative or addition to the distance measuring sensor 211, have anenergy usage sensor to calculate real CO2 emissions per km travelledand/or a CO2 emission sensor to measure the instantaneous and cumulativeCO2 emissions from the primary vehicle 206 or from the primary vehicle206 and the secondary vehicle 207.

The motor 226 may be used as a generator to provide electric power tothe battery 225 via the differential unit 230. The motor may be drivenby the slowing of rear wheels 208R of primary vehicle 206, in a processcalled regenerative breaking The use of regenerative braking recuperateskinetic energy from the primary vehicle 206 that may otherwise be lost.It should be appreciated that the embodiments are not limited to the useof regenerative braking to recharge the battery 225.

The secondary electronic unit 221 may supply information to the primaryelectronic unit 220 regarding usage of the secondary vehicle 217 and, inparticular, the distance travelled by the secondary vehicle. Thesecondary electronic unit 221 may also provide an identity signal to theprimary electronic unit 220 that may be used by the electronic unit 220to determine whether the combined battery and motor unit 217 of thesecondary vehicle is nested with the primary vehicle 206 or has beenremoved.

When the combined battery and motor unit 217 is removed from the primaryvehicle 206, the connection between the secondary electronic unit 221and the electronic unit 220 via the connector 115 may be broken and thismay be used as an indication that the parts forming the secondaryvehicle have been removed from the primary vehicle 206.

Alternatively, the removal of the secondary vehicle or, in this example,the combined battery and motor unit 217, may be sensed independently ofthe state of the connector 215 in a previously described method.

A navigation system and the user prompt of the primary vehicle 206 maybe removable from the primary vehicle 206 for use on the secondaryvehicle 207 to enable the secondary vehicle 207 to continue the journeyto the destination and to guide the secondary vehicle 207 back to theprimary vehicle 206.

Alternatively, destination information may be transferred either byphysical connection or wirelessly to the secondary vehicle 207 from theprimary vehicle 206 to enable the secondary vehicle 206 to continue thejourney to the destination and to guide the secondary vehicle 207 backto the primary vehicle 206. In this example, the secondary vehicle maybe provided with some form of route guidance unit.

In the embodiments described above, the data storage device, the userinterface device, and the user prompt device are formed as part of theprimary vehicle. However, in other embodiments, the data storagedevice(s) for storing information regarding usage of the primary andsecondary vehicles, the user interface device for displaying informationregarding usage of the primary and secondary vehicles, and/or the userprompt device for providing information regarding potentialopportunities for use of the secondary vehicle could be formed by atransportable communications device such as a smartphone, tablet, orother portable electronic device.

The transportable communication device may include a microcomputer,including a microprocessor unit, input/output ports, an electronicstorage medium (e.g., a read-only memory chip) for non-transitoryexecutable programs and calibration values, random access memory, keepalive memory, and a data bus. The transportable communication device maybe programmed with computer readable data representing instructionsexecutable by a processor of the transportable communication device forperforming the methods described herein as well as other variants thatare anticipated but not specifically listed. These may includeinstructions for receiving global positioning signals, CO2 emissions,user input, and information from external data sources.

FIG. 6 shows another embodiment of a system 305 comprising a primaryvehicle 306 and a secondary vehicle 307. The primary vehicle 306 has aCO2 producing engine 310 and road wheels 308F, 308R. The secondaryvehicle has two road wheels 316F, 316R. However, in this embodiment,instead of using immobilizer and override devices to control the usageof the primary vehicle 306, the primary vehicle 306 includes a vehiclemovement data recorder 323 to validate the usage of the primary vehicle306 by recording time stamps of odometer changes or of ignition on/offevents. The primary vehicle 306 may further include a Near FieldCommunication tag (NFC tag) and/or a Radio Frequency Identification tag(RFID tag) indicated generally by the reference numeral 324. Thesecondary vehicle 307 may include either a NFC tag or a RFID tagindicated by the reference numeral 325.

The primary vehicle 306 and secondary vehicle 307 may be connectedwirelessly via the NFC or RFID tags 324 and 325, to a transportablecommunications device 326 such as a smartphone, tablet computer orpersonal computer such as a netbook or laptop. A radio frequency reader327 may be integrated into the transportable communications device 326.Alternatively and as is shown, a radio frequency reader 327 may beoperatively connected to the transportable communications device 326 bya cable or wire.

The transportable communications device 326 may be loaded with and runan application that may, in some instances, be released or endorsed by aregulatory or taxation agency.

A disclosed application may be executed via a processing unit and mayreceive geographic data from an external source. When the application isrunning a user may be prompted to input a destination into theapplication. Further, the current location may be known by thetransportable communications device 326. The application may then beoperable to query or retrieve data on congestion, parking atdestination, road usage charges, restrictions etc. The processing unitmay have instructions to overlay this information with historic runningcost/emission data for the composite vehicle to output a selection oftravel options (quickest, cheapest, greenest) making optimal use of oneor both of the vehicles 306 and 307 forming the composite vehicle. Thisoutput may be received by the driver via a display.

Based upon the provided information, a user may select a chosen routevia an input device. The user may then take the transportablecommunications device 326 along in the chosen vehicle 306 or 307 fornavigation and control of the composite vehicle system.

During use, the application may continuously monitor the availability ofthe NFC or RFID tags 324 and 325 of both vehicles 306 and 307 and recordconnection to both. It may also record and synchronize the time stampsof the vehicle movement data recorder 323 fitted to the primary vehicle306 with the application, if in range.

If the NFC or RFID tags of both the primary and secondary vehicles 306and 307 may be connected to the application while the position of thetransportable communications device 326 is changing. It may subsequentlybe determined if the primary vehicle 306 is driving and transporting thesecondary vehicle 307 enabling a sequential journey. Here, a sequentialjourney is one in which one vehicle is used at a time.

If the NFC or RFID tag 324 located on the primary vehicle 306 isconnected and the NFC or RFID tag of the secondary vehicle 325 is not,the primary vehicle 306 may be driving without the secondary vehicle 307and no sequential journey may occur.

If the NFC tag or RFID tag 325 located on the secondary vehicle 307 isconnected and the NFC tag or RFID tag 324 located on the primary vehicle307 is not, a sequential journey may be possible, if the primary vehicle306 is not driving independently. This can be confirmed via the timestamps stored in the vehicle movement data recorder 323 on the primaryvehicle 306 at the next reconnection of the application running on thetransportable communications device 326 with the primary vehicle 306.

The application may continuously record the position of thetransportable communications device 326 during the journey, and togetherwith the time stamps of connection to the NFC or RFID tags 324 and 325,calculate the usage of both vehicles 306 and 307, It may furtherdetermine if a sequential journey occurred and, if available, whethertax breaks or other incentives have been earned.

Continuously, at regular intervals, or after each journey, theapplication may transmit the calculated journey distances and calculatedCO2 savings with an identification (ID) of the primary vehicle 306 toregulatory and/or taxation authorities for data storage/action.Potentially, the vehicle ID and time stamps when entering/exitingcertain charging zones could also be transmitted to regulatory and/ortaxation authorities to pay other charges or receive other incentives,depending on which vehicle was used.

Using this simplified approach, the investment by a user may be limitedto the vehicle movement data recorder 323 for recording time stamps, theNFC tags/RFIDs 324 and 325 and NFC/RFID reader 327 for transmitting andreceiving the time stamp data and for proximity sensing along with theapplication and a suitable transportable communications device 326.

Referring now back to systems 5, 105 and 205 shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3may also include a transportable communication device. Therefore, thedata storage device for storing information regarding usage of theprimary and secondary vehicles, the user interface device for displayinginformation regarding usage of the primary and secondary vehicles,and/or the user prompt device for providing information regardingpotential opportunities for use of the secondary vehicle, may beincluded within a transportable communications device.

A method of operating a composite motor vehicle such as that shown inFIG. 1 is shown in FIG. 7.

The method commences at 501 with an ignition key-on event for theprimary vehicle and then advances to block 502 to determine whether theprimary and secondary vehicles are nested together. In otherembodiments, it may be determined if the secondary vehicle or a combinedbattery and motor unit has been removed or detached from the primaryvehicle.

If the primary and secondary vehicles 6 and 7 are nested together thenthe method may advance to 510 and normal operation of the primaryvehicle 6 may be enabled. The distance and/or energy consumed and/or CO2emitted data may be synchronized between the data storage systems of theprimary and the secondary vehicles. At 530 it may be determined whetherthe ignition key is still in the on position. If the ignition key isstill in an on position the method may return to 502, if it is not themethod may end at 550.

Referring back to 502, if the primary and secondary vehicles are notnested together the method may advance to 520. If an override is notavailable, as may be the case in other embodiments, the method mayadvance straight to 525.

At 520 it may be determined whether there is a manual override and, ifthere is, the method may advance to 510 and thereafter to 530 asdiscussed above. However, if there is no manual override at 520, themethod may advance to 525 and the primary vehicle may be immobilized.

From 525 the method may advance to 530 to determine whether the ignitionkey is still in the on position. If the key is in the on position themethod may return to 502, if it is not the method may end at 550.

A method for reducing passenger vehicle generated CO2 emissions is shownin FIG. 8.

The method starts at 610 where the method comprises providing acomposite passenger vehicle having a primary vehicle that produces CO2emissions and a secondary vehicle that produces substantially less CO2emissions and is transportable by the primary vehicle. The method thenadvances to the steps 620, 630, 640 and 650 described below.

At 620, a device for monitoring usage of the primary and secondaryvehicles is provided. This could be via electronic units attached to theprimary vehicle and secondary vehicles as described with reference toFIGS. 1 to 5. It may also be a Radio Frequency or Near Field device, avehicle movement data recorder, and/or a transportable personalcommunications device loaded with a software application as describedwith reference to FIG. 6.

At 630, information regarding usage of the primary and secondaryvehicles may be saved or stored for later retrieval in a memory deviceforming part of the primary vehicle as described with reference to FIGS.1 to 5 or in a memory device formed as part of the transportablecommunications device or as part of the movement data recorder. Thisprovides the opportunity for use by regulatory authorities and/or by theuser to evaluate use of the composite vehicle.

At 640, information regarding the usage of the primary and secondaryvehicles may be displayed to assist the user with usage of the compositevehicle. This may be via a display formed as part of the primary vehicle(such as in the case of the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 to 5) or by atransportable communication device (such as in the case of theembodiment shown in FIG. 6).

Further, at 650, information regarding usage may be transmitted ortransferred to regulatory authorities or other third parties requiringsuch information. This may be achieved wirelessly or by a physical linksuch as a cable.

An example of the method relating to the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, mayinclude providing a primary and secondary vehicle a data recorder toproduce time stamps of significant events such as distance travelled andkey-on events, attaching radio frequency tags to the primary andsecondary vehicles, providing a radio frequency tag reader to read theradio frequency tags, providing a personal transportable communicationsdevice enabled with a software application, linking the radio frequencytag reader to the transportable communications device, and/or using thetransportable communications device to calculate and store usage datafor both vehicles and using the transportable communications device totransfer the usage data to a third party such as a regulatory authority.

The secondary vehicle has been described with reference to a two wheeledvehicle such as a pedal cycle, electric cycle or electric scooterbecause such devices are particularly advantageous in reducingcongestion due to their compact shape. However, the systems and methodsherein may be applied to other types of secondary vehicles. For examplea subsidiary or secondary vehicle may be in the form of a small car. Itshould be appreciated that the disclosed systems and methods may beapplied to any arrangement wherein the subsidiary vehicle is electricpowered or produces significantly less CO2 emissions than the primaryvehicle.

Further, the primary vehicle may be a large commercial vehicle and thesecondary vehicle may be a smaller delivery vehicle that may bedemountable from the large commercial vehicle to make local deliveries.In such a case the use of the secondary vehicle may not producesubstantially zero CO2 emissions but the CO2 emissions would beconsiderably less than the large commercial vehicle.

Yet another example may have a motorhome producing large CO2 emissionsas the primary vehicle that may tow small city vehicle producing low orsubstantially less CO2 emissions.

Therefore, a primary vehicle such as a car or van and a secondaryvehicle that together form a composite vehicle, may increase vehicleefficiency, potentially enter urban centers withoutrestrictions/charges, reduce CO2 taxes, and reduce company fleetemission averages.

The systems and methods disclosed herein may also apply togoods-carrying vehicles, where one or more secondary vehicles may benested in or with the primary vehicle to distribute goods. The term‘nested’ as used herein means that the primary and secondary vehiclesare connected together in a manner permitting the transportations of thesecondary vehicle by the primary vehicle. This may include carrying ofthe secondary vehicle by the primary vehicle and towing of the secondaryvehicle by the primary vehicle.

It will be appreciated that the configurations and methods disclosedherein are exemplary in nature, and that these specific embodiments arenot to be considered in a limiting sense, because numerous variationsare possible. For example, the above technology can be applied to V-6,I-4, I-6, V-12, opposed 4, and other engine types. The subject matter ofthe present disclosure includes all novel and non-obvious combinationsand sub-combinations of the various systems and configurations, andother features, functions, and/or properties disclosed herein.

The following claims particularly point out certain combinations andsub-combinations regarded as novel and non-obvious. These claims mayrefer to “an” element or “a first” element or the equivalent thereof.Such claims should be understood to include incorporation of one or moresuch elements, neither requiring nor excluding two or more suchelements. Other combinations and sub-combinations of the disclosedfeatures, functions, elements, and/or properties may be claimed throughamendment of the present claims or through presentation of new claims inthis or a related application. Such claims, whether broader, narrower,equal, or different in scope to the original claims, also are regardedas included within the subject matter of the present disclosure.

1. A vehicle system comprising: a composite vehicle including a primaryvehicle having a CO2 emission producing engine and a secondary vehicleproducing less CO2 emissions than the primary vehicle and beingtransportable by the primary vehicle; a device to detect whether thesecondary vehicle has been removed from the primary vehicle; a datastorage device for storing information regarding usage of the primaryvehicle and the secondary vehicle; and a user interface for displayinginformation regarding usage of the primary vehicle and the secondaryvehicle.
 2. The system of claim 1 wherein the data storage devicecomprises at least one memory unit for storing data regarding usage ofthe primary vehicle and the secondary vehicle.
 3. The system of claim 1,wherein the user interface comprises a display showing a distancetravelled by the primary vehicle and the distance travelled by thesecondary vehicle, a display providing an indication of actual usage ofthe primary vehicle compared to a target usage, a display showing acompensated usage for the primary vehicle based upon the actual usage ofthe primary vehicle and the secondary vehicle, or some combinationthereof.
 4. The system of claim 1, including an immobilizing device toimmobilize the primary vehicle when the secondary vehicle has beenremoved from the primary vehicle.
 5. The system claim 1, wherein thedevice to detect whether the secondary vehicle has been removed from theprimary vehicle comprises a physical sensor or a contactlesscommunication link between the primary vehicle and the secondary vehicleoperable to determine when the secondary vehicle is located remotelyfrom the primary vehicle.
 6. The system of claim 5, wherein thecontactless communications link is uses Radio Frequency Identificationor Near field Communication and includes an active radio frequency or apassive radio frequency tag on each vehicle and a radio frequency readerto read the output from the radio frequency tags.
 7. The system of claim1, including an electronic system for tracking a geographic position ofthe primary vehicle and the secondary vehicle and a control system withinstructions to compare the locations of the primary vehicle and thesecondary vehicle and provide an output indicative of a removal of thesecondary vehicle if a respective geographic locations of the primaryvehicle and the secondary vehicle differ by more than a predefinedamount.
 8. The system of claim 1, further comprising a user prompt fordisplaying information regarding potential opportunities for use of thesecondary vehicle and a device for transferring data regarding usage ofthe primary vehicle and the secondary vehicle to a third party.
 9. Thesystem of claim 1, further comprising a navigation system capable ofdetermining a current position of the primary vehicle and a destinationfor the primary vehicle based upon a user input and a user promptincluding a display that can indicate when an opportunity for use of thesecondary vehicle exists responsive to the destination of the primaryvehicle, the proximity of the primary vehicle to its destination, andthe location of parking garages in the vicinity of the destination. 10.The system of claim 9, wherein at least one of the navigation system andthe user prompt of the primary vehicle is removable from the primaryvehicle for use on the secondary vehicle to enable the secondary vehicleto continue travel to the destination and to guide the secondary vehicleback to the primary vehicle.
 11. The system of claim 1, wherein the datastorage devices, the user interface device, the user prompt, or somecombination thereof is included in a transportable communicationsdevice.
 12. The system of claim 11, wherein a radio frequency reader isincluded in the transportable communications device or operativelyconnected to the transportable communications device.
 13. The system ofclaim 12, wherein the transportable communications device is asmartphone, tablet, laptop computer, or other hand held electronicdevice.
 14. The system of claim 1, wherein operating the secondaryvehicle produces zero CO2 emissions from combustion.
 15. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the secondary vehicle is a bicycle, scooter, moped,motorcycle, hybrid vehicle, or another vehicle propelled in some part bya combustion engine.
 16. The system of claim 1, wherein the primaryvehicle is a commercial vehicle, car, van, truck, or a hybrid versionthereof. 17-18. (canceled)
 19. A method, comprising: propelling aprimary vehicle via an engine mounted therein, the vehicle having aninterface for interchanging data with, and a mount for carrying, asecondary vehicle producing less carbon dioxide emissions than theprimary vehicle; immobilizing the primary vehicle if the secondaryvehicle is removed from the mount and not exchanging data with theprimary vehicle; and displaying information regarding potentialopportunities for use of the secondary vehicle.